Relations of interest
by Deamonslayer576
Summary: Hermione has been chosen as an ambassador to form relations with Konoha. During her journey she meets new friends and must decide if she is willing to invest more of herself, and her heart, into this new and interesting country.
1. A journey begins

_**Hello Everyone I decided to start on a new crossover even though I shouldn't until I finish my other one. However I have a better plan for this story and have actually figured out a lot of the plot already so I hope things go more smoothly then they usually do. The idea for this story has been floating in my head for a while and I hope that you guys like reading it. Fair warning though, I am a very inconsistent updater.**_

 _ **So one thing I would like to get out before I begin the story is that I have not been super up to date with Naruto. I have tried my best to get information by reading the wikis and such but this is also Fanfiction and I will be changing a few things in my universe. Now on with the story!**_

"Good evening Passengers, the captain has turned the seatbelt sign on and we will be beginning our descent into Tokyo shortly. Please make sure your seat and trays are in the upright position and remember to remain seated until the aircraft has come to a complete stop. Thank you for flying today with Japan Airlines and enjoy your stay in Tokyo." Hermione woke from her sleep as the flight attendant rattled off the same welcome speech in Japanese. The flight had been a long one and the bushy haired witch realized how much she had grown used to instant wizarding transportation. Thinking of the wizarding world Hermione was reminded of why she was all the way in Japan.

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 _Flashback_

The sound of clicking heels echoed around the tiled walls of the British ministry of magic as Hermione Granger made her way to the minister's office. People were rushing around and paper airplanes were flying through the air as she approached the minister's office, spotting Percy at his desk.

"Hello Percy, I have a meeting with the minster." The red headed male looked up from his papers and gave her a kind nod.

"Oh hello Hermione, yes please go in." With a smile Hermione moved past the Weasley male. She was relieved that Percy had made up with his family after the defeat of Voldemort. Now he was the undersecretary of the minster and was determined to move up. She pulled her thoughts off the Weasley family and back to the matter at hand as she pushed the large wooden door open, spotting Kingsley at his desk. She was slightly surprised to see the mess that the office was in. Normally Kingsley was a very organized man, but now almost every flat surface in the office was covered with books and paper.

"Ms. Granger please come in." The minister waved Hermione forward and gestured for her to take a seat in one of the plush chairs in front of him. Hermione walked forward taking caution to move around he piles of books filling the office. Taking a quick glimpse of the books she noticed that most of the spines didn't even have any title on them. The majority of the books were leather bound and cracked with age as yellow pages peeked out of their bindings. When she reached the desk she quickly took a seat and noticed the desk was covered in scrolls with writing that looked Japanese in nature.

"Hello Kingsley, how are you doing?" Hermione grew slightly worried as Kingsley gave her a tired look and rubbed his hand over his head to ward off a headache.

"A matter of great importance has thrown things into disarray." Warning bells went off in her mind. She hadn't heard about anything-large happening. If it were an attack or important information she would have heard about it. The fact that things had been silent and calm meant that this was secret information that the ministry was trying to keep quiet.

"What's wrong? Is there any way I can help?"

"Do you know anything about the hidden nations Ms. Granger?" The question surprised Hermione. Over her years in the Hogwarts library and personal reading she had developed quite a large range of reading material. However, she had never heard of such a place as the hidden nations.

"The hidden nations? No I don't think I have? What are they?"

"See that is the issue. There is very little known about the hidden nations. They were in a constant state of war for almost a century and thus closed their borders, sealing themselves off from the rest of the world. However, things have apparently calmed down and they are now opening their borders again to make foreign treaties. They already have one with Japan and are now branching out into different parts of the world. I'm sure you are wondering why you haven't already heard about this. Well we are trying to keep things quiet for now. The hidden nations are a large unknown and we do not want to spread the word about them if they decide to reject a treaty and go back into hiding. To let the public known that there was a hidden nation that suddenly appeared could cause panic. "

"Isn't it a risk to entre into a treaty with a country we know nothing about?" The mess of an office made more sense to the young woman now. Obviously they were pulling up any text that could possibly have information, and trying to understand what kind of place these hidden nations were.

"Yes but the small amounts of information we do have could prove this treaty very valuable. Apparently the people of this _continent_ not _country_ are masters of incredible magical abilities. We have also already raised the issue of limited information with their informant in the Japanese ministry. They are willing to allow a foreign ambassador into the borders to learn about their way of life before the singing of a treaty. That is where you come in Ms. Granger, we would like you to be the ambassador."

"ME?! But why me?"

"You are the head of magical law enforcement and have been involved with making many laws, thus you have some political savvy. You also have fighting experience and knowledge of the muggle realm. Apparently their society is militaristic and the people with abilities live among the muggles, everyone is aware of magical powers. You would be able to relate to these people and not make a fool of yourself."

"I guess, but how long would this posting be? I have my department to look after, people depend on me."

"You would be gone for a year. And you need not worry about your job, we will have a suitable replacement watch over the department in your absence."

"A year?!" The young woman sat and thought about that information for a moment. A whole year without getting to see her friends and family, she would have to sacrifice a lot. But at the same time it was an amazing opportunity. The chance to visit a place that no one had seen for near a century and meet so many new people. Deep inside her she felt that little flutter of adventure. It had been about six years since the defeat of Voldemort and life had clamed down quite a bit after that. Even though her mind liked the idea of a calm life, her spirit still yearned for the adventures of her younger days. This was her chance to have another adventure. And this time she would be the star of this new story. Besides she needed some time away to clear her head and get her priorities in order.

"If you decide to accept then you would leave in a week. That should be enough time to gather you things and say goodbye. Will you at least think about it?"

"No."

"No you won't do it? I'm sorry to hear that."

"No, I don't really need to think about it. I will take the job." Hermione said resolutely as she looked the minister right in the eyes. When she made a commitment she saw it through and this would be no exception.

"Well that is wonderful, I will have the arrangements made right away. Thank you very much Ms. Granger, I have full confidence in you." Kingsley stood and shook hands with the younger witch. He had watched her battle her way through the war and defy all the barriers put in front of her. After she insisted on starting at the bottom, she had worked her way up through the rankings until she became the head of the magical law department at only 25. When Kingsley had received word of this international opportunity she had been the first person that came to mind. He knew that he could trust this young woman with such an important job. And he was sure that she would come back with good relations between the two nations.

 _End Flashback_

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And that was how she came to be wandering around Haneda International airport in Tokyo Japan. Her backpack bounced against her back as she pushed her way through the throngs of airport foot traffic. She was attempting to locate the guide that would take her to the Japanese ministry but that was proving to be a bit difficult. It was a sea of black heads as the English witch attempted to make her way to the luggage carousels. When she finally arrived Hermione could see three people holding signs with names on them. At least she assumed that the other two were names, her translation charm only really worked on spoken language not written. However the last sign carried her name in familiar letters held by a tall Japanese male. Approaching him she saw the man instantly pick her out and walk towards her.

"Granger Hermione?" The pronunciation was good but the heavy accent made it slightly difficult to understand that the man was indeed speaking English. It was also going to take her a while to get used to the way people introduced each other in this country. She had attempted to read up on Japanese etiquette as much as she could so she wouldn't embarrass herself. However things were quite different in this country and it was going to take her some getting used to.

"Yes that is me, I'm guessing you are my guide." Hermione took a moment to examine the man standing in front of her. The man had dark brown hair and was almost a head taller than her. He also appeared to be in very good shape. She could make out muscle underneath his blue button up shift and black dress pants.

"Yes my name is Okada Yuuto and I will be taking you to your hotel for the night. Tomorrow you will be meeting with the minister. Please follow me Granger-san." Hermione rushed to keep up or loose track of Yuuto among the sea of people. She followed him out to the parking lot where Yuuto opened up the door of a silver car and ushered her in. As he got in the drivers seat and started the engine Hermione examined her surroundings. Night had already fallen as they pulled out of the parking lot and onto the busy night streets. While she had lived in the muggle world it had been a while since she had spent any long period of time in it. Seeing the bright lights and massive skyscrapers were very different than the medieval style architecture of the British wizarding world. Hermione attempted to start a conversation a few times but the stoic face of Yuuto was all that she got in return. Eventually she gave up and simply looked out the window at the city flashing by. Soon the buzz of the engine and effect of the time change took hold of her and she found herself falling asleep.

"Granger-san, please wake up." Hermione was roused from her sleep by a hand gently pushing on her shoulder.

"What?" It took Hermione a moment to remember that she was in Japan and supposed to be a representative of the UK. But at that time she was so tired that she could hardly concentrate on anything.

"We have arrived at the hotel, I have already checked with the front desk and your room is ready." The Japanese male gently helped her out of the car.

"Oh thank you Okada-san." Still half asleep Yuuto put a steadying hand on the English witch's shoulder and guided her into the hotel. Hermione barely even registered anything as she stepped into an elevator and then found herself in a luxurious suite. Suddenly the steadying hand was gone and Hermione turned to find Yuuto walking out the door.

"I will be back at one tomorrow afternoon to escort you to the ministry. Feel free to order any room service the cost is covered. Enjoy your night Granger-san." Hermione mumbled a goodbye as she took a quick glimpse around the room. Spotting her backpack sitting on the massive king sized bed the witch quickly found her pajamas and crawled under the warm covers. It was going to be a very long day tomorrow.

 _ **There we go the first chapter. I know that nothing too big happened in this chapter but is more of an intro to set the stage. I hope to get the next chapter out soon but I am a very inconsistent updater so be warned. I hope that you guys like the idea of this story and continue to follow it. If you have any ideas of things you would like to see happen send me a PM and I may work it into the story.**_

 _ **Also please REVIEW! The more reviews I get the more motivated I am and the faster I update. So please hit that button down there and make me a very happy author. Until next time Slayer out.**_


	2. Trips to the ministry and beyond

Rays of sunlight streaked through a crack in the curtains rousing Hermione from her sleep. The tired witch rolled onto her back and tried to gather her thoughts when she remembered what she had done last night. Groaning Hermione closed her eyes again and wished that it had all been a dream but she knew it was real. She was supposed to be a political envoy, a representative of the British wizarding world, and she had acted like a little kid passed their bedtime. Brushing a messy piece of hair out of her face and rubbing her eyes free of sleep dust Hermione looked over at the clock, and realized it was already noon.

"Oh merlin! I only have an hour to get ready!" Rocketing out of bed Hermione took a second to look around her hotel room and located the bathroom. Rushing inside she jumped in the shower for the quickest wash-down of her life. There wasn't even time for steam to form on the mirror before the British witch was out of her shower with a towel wrapped around her. Looking in the mirror Hermione frowned at her hair. She didn't have time to blow-dry it the way she wanted to and magic drying made her hair even more frizzy than normal. However she didn't have a choice as she rushed back to the main bedroom and grabbed her wand from the bedside table.

She muttered the spell to dry her hair and sighed in annoyance as the frizzy hair immediately obscured her vision. Rushing back to the washroom she checked the clock and realized that she still had 45 minutes left. Hermione brushed her hair with ferocity, yanking it into a bun that looked somewhat respectable and grabbed her makeup. As she applied her eye shadow Hermione chastised herself for not setting an alarm. There was a fifteen-hour time difference between Britain and Japan. Doing a quick conversion in her head that meant that it was around three in the morning back home. Her weird sleep schedule because of the flight was messing with her. Hopefully she would be able to adjust quickly enough.

Now finished in the washroom Hermione grabbed her backpack and searched for a suit to wear to the ministry. After the mess of yesterday with Okada Yuuto she wanted to make a better impression. Checking the clock again Hermione realized that her speedy dressing had left her with about fifteen minutes to spare. Taking a deep breath Hermione gabbed an apple from a fruit bowl on a table and went to the window. Looking out Hermione took in the skyline of Tokyo. The sun was already high in the sky, obscured by the heavy smog of pollution. Down bellow people rushed through the streets and cars made their way through traffic. She was broken from her observations as a knock sounded at her door. When she opened the door she saw Okada Yuuto standing in a smart looking suit.

"Good Morning Granger-san." Hermione noticed a small smirk on Okada's mouth as he look in the frizzy hair.

"Good morning to you too Okada-san."

"Are you ready to go Granger-san?"

"Yes, I'm ready." Okada nodded and Hermione followed him through the hotel to the front entrance where the car from yesterday was already waiting. Once they were both strapped in and driving Hermione turned to the stone faced Japanese man.

"Okada-san I would like to apologize for my actions yesterday. You probably think me very unprofessional." Okada kept his attention on the road as he responded.

"It is no issue Granger-san. Time change can be very hard to overcome and I do not blame you for being so tired. I was slightly surprised that you were actually ready to go." Hermione gave a nervous laugh.

"Well again I would just like to say that I am not usually like that. I have gotten some sleep so it shouldn't happen again." Okada just smiled and continued driving. After being on the busy roads for a while and being stuck in downtown traffic the car stopped outside a massive skyscraper.

"We are here." Yuuto got out of the car and came around to open the passenger door and held out his hand.

"This is the Japanese ministry?" Hermione took the offered hand as she exited the car and took in her surroundings. The British ministry was all about secrecy yet in Japan the government was house in a modern skyscraper in downtown Tokyo.

"Yes, please follow me Granger-san." Hermione followed and marveled at the structure. The tower was a massive glass building stretching high into the sky. Entering the large doors the people were going through brought Hermione into a massive front lobby area. The entire inside was as super modern as the outside. Everything was clean lined, monochromatic colors and no clutter, pretty much the exact opposite of the British wizarding world. The people they passed weren't even sporting wizarding robes; everything was a suit. Okada glanced behind him and saw Hermione looking around with a look of shock on her face.

"Not what you were expecting Granger-san?"

"Well, it is just very different."

"Yes I have heard about the British ministry. No offence to you Granger-san but Britain is very behind the times."

"I take no offence Okada-san, I completely agree." It was true that the British wizarding world had hardly changed since the Middle Ages. They still wrote on parchment and wore those massive cumbersome robes. She had tried to integrate some technology from the muggle world such as pens. But the very traditionally driven community that could not stand change was pushing back even on the smallest of things. Maybe Britain could take an example from Japan. Yuuto approached a desk were a young woman was typing away on a computer.

" _Hello Okada-san, are you here to sign in?"_ Hermione's translation charm kicked in and the Japanese words were switched to English in her mind.

" _Yes me and Granger-san here."_ The young woman pulled a clipboard out and handed it to Okada before picking up the phone and speaking quickly into it. The Japanese male turned to Hermione holding out the clipboard and a pen.

"Please sign your name here Granger-san." Hermione took the offered pen and signed her name. As soon as she did that she felt a slight tingle before the clipboard was taken away again. The young woman looked up from her call and took the clipboard back. After speaking for another minute she hung up the phone and waved the two of them trough.

" _The minister is ready to see you."_ Okada gave her a slight bow in thanks before leading Hermione further into the lobby.

Hermione and Yuuto got into an elevator and she watched the arrow go up until they hit the 30th floor. When the doors opened they were greeted with a large hallway with a door at the end. Hermione looked around for guards of some sort but she didn't see anything.

"I am a bit surprised by the lack of security Okada-san. Aren't you worried that your minister could be attacked?"

"Just because you can't see it does not mean that we have no security. If anyone had any ill intentions they would not have made it through the front doors." Hermione waited for a further explanation but when none was offered she realized that they were not about to reveal their secrets. When they arrived at the large doors Okada knocked before pushing forward into the office.

Hermione tried to keep her mouth from gapping open and looking unprofessional. Three of the four office walls were windows, showing an incredible view of the Tokyo skyline. Large bookshelves lined the final wall, filled to the brim with books and scrolls of all types. In the center of the office was a massive oak desk and behind that desk sat the Japanese minster of magic. The man looked to be in his late fifties with a few grey streaks going through his black hair. Only small wrinkles betrayed his age as the man looked to still be incredible shape.

"Ah Okada-san this must be Granger Hermione."

"Kobayashi-sama." Okada bowed low and Hermione quickly followed suit in an awkward bow of her own.

"It is honor to meet you minister."

"It is good to meet you Granger Hermione, I am Kobayashi Daichi the minster of the Japanese magical society. I understand that you are the representative of Britain that will be going to the hidden nations."

"Yes, I heard that you already have a treaty with the hidden nations."

"Indeed we do." Kobayashi learned forward and rested his chin on his hands.

"I was wondering minster if it would be possible for you to perhaps give me some information on these hidden nations." The minister gave a small smile at the young woman in front of him. He gave her some credit as she was trying to find out as much information as possible. He knew that Britain did not have much information on the hidden nations as they had kept to themselves for the most part.

"Almost a century ago a large-scale war broke out and they closed their borders only allowing slips of information to come through. The hidden nations themselves are many small counties that form a continent. While each nation is its own country they have finally settled on peace with their leaders coming to a consensus. The nation that you will be in is the land of fire and you will be living in the village of Konoha. It is considered one of the great villages and its leader, or Hokage as they call him, was the one who brought all the leaders together and began reaching out over the borders."

"This Hokage sounds like an amazing man, can you tell me about him?" The minister gave her a knowing smile.

"That you will have to discover on your own, I shall not reveal village secrets. However I will give a warning, their society is very different from what you are used to."

"I will keep that in mind, thank you." Hermione planned on taking anything the minster said to heart. She did not know what kind of situation she was getting herself into and she wanted as much information as she could get her hands on.

"Well I believe that we have some paperwork to finalize so we can have you on your way tomorrow." The minister pulled out his wand and conjured a chair for Hermione to sit on while pulling out a large stack of papers. The British witch looked at the imposing pile of work and settled herself down for a long day.

Almost four hours later the final piece of paper was signed and Hermione had to fight not to slouch back in her chair.

"Wonderful, everything is in order for tomorrow." The minister pulled out a folder and placed all the paperwork inside.

"So I believe that I will be going with an informant to the hidden nations. When will I be meeting them?" Apparently it was incredibly difficult to get to the hidden nations. The barrier that protected the hidden nations was powerful and only certain people had the ability to enter.

"You already have Granger-san." The minister nodded towards Okada who had been standing patiently waiting for them to finish working.

"Okada-san?" The British witch was a little surprised. Okada seemed like a nice enough guy but not one to hold the secret key to an entire continent.

"Yes, Okada-san's family has guarded the border since it was first raised. He is one of the few who knows how to get through it and will be escorting you. The journey will take a few days and I suggest you wear something comfortable. Now I suggest you get an early night Granger-san, it will be a long day of travel." The minister rose from his seat and Hermione quickly followed.

"Thank you for taking time out of your day to see me minister." Once again Hermione attempted her best bow in thanks to the minister.

"You are welcome Granger-san and I wish you luck on your journey." Hermione gave a final quick bow before she was lead out of the office and was soon back on her way to the hotel.

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The smell of salt water whipped around Hermione as the strong sea breeze blew past her. The witch was standing on the deck of a ship looking out on the ocean and the gorgeous sunshine was shinning down on her. It had been an early start but it was worth it to see the sun rising over the ocean as they had set out from port.

According to Okada it would take them almost a full day until they hit the barrier and then another two before they could dock in the elemental nations. Once they docked there would be someone to escort her to Konoha were she would meet their leader and get settled. After that it was all up to the Hokage and her. The thought of meeting the Hokage was a little terrifying to Hermione. For someone to bring together a warring nation they would have to be very powerful. Trying to imagine the fearsome warrior the image of an elderly Japanese male came to mind. Almost like a Japanese version of Dumbledore who had brought peace and changed the lives of so many.

Hermione suddenly felt a rain drop on her face and looked up only to realize that the sunshine had disappeared. Now there were the roiling gray clouds of a fearsome storm above for miles. Looking around she noticed the few crewmembers that had were coming on the journey were tying things down and heading inside to get out of the weather.

"Granger-san please come inside." Hermione looked to see Okada coming towards her.

"Should we turn back Okada-san? This storm is looking bad and I don't want to risk you or your men."

"We have nothing to fear from this storm Granger-san. We will be approaching the barrier in about an hour. This storm is a precaution to keep people away and posses no threat to us as we have the proper equipment to get us through. But I would prefer you come inside and stay in the bridge until we are through the barrier."

"If you are sure." With a nod from Okada Hermione made her way inside to the bridge followed shortly by her male escort. Under cover she came to stand next to the young man who was sailing the ship into the eye of the storm. He steered with confidence and Hermione felt some comfort from the fact that the rest of the crew felt no fear. They plowed through the waves and the storm kept getting bigger. Rain was pounding down on the windows making it almost impossible to see what was going on outside. It seemed to go on forever when suddenly Okada called for the ship to stop. Okada left the bridge and made his way to the bow of the ship's deck. Hermione followed after him quickly, curiosity getting the better of her.

Hermione pulled her jacket tight and opened the door outside to be greeted with howling winds and rain. Even though she shouldn't have been out there she could only watch in fascination as Okada pulled out a scroll from his jacket and unrolled it before placing it on the deck of the ship. He made some hand movements before slamming his palms down on the scroll. Out of nowhere light shot up from the scroll and then forward over the ocean. At first Hermione couldn't see it but then the outline for a massive wall began to form. Okada called for the ship to be brought forward and as the bow of the ship advance he made more movements with his hands. Light appeared again and pierced the wall of light before forming a hole large enough for the ship to pass through. Once the ship was clear Okada made a few more hand signs before the light faded away and they continued on their journey. As Okada was rolling up the scroll he noticed Hermione watching him. Walking towards her he gestured for her go head back inside.

"You should not have been out there Granger-san it was unsafe."

"That was an incredible show of magic, I've never seen anything like it." Okada was still giving her a scolding look as they headed back inside the ship.

"You will see plenty of it in the hidden nations." Now Hermione couldn't wait to see what these people were capable of.

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Hermione had never been so happy to see land in her life. The journey had been long and after two whole days of nothing but ocean she was ready to set foot on solid ground again. Small islands were now appearing through the clouds and some of the islands even had small houses on them. Apparently they would be docking in an hour. Hermione went back to her small cabin in the bottom levels of the ship and made sure that she had all of her belongings. She had been warned that she probably still had a few more days of travel to go once they hit solid land but she would be doing that with a Konoha escort.

"Granger-san we are approaching land!" The call echoed bellow. Grabbing her backpack Hermione sprinted up the stairs to gaze at the land before her. A large expanse of land lay before her covered in rich green looking trees and water fields. The structures of a port were also appearing in the distance and she could make out the yellow color of beech sand.

"Its beautiful." Okada walked up to the railing she was standing at and looked out at the terrain.

"Welcome to the land of Tea, we are approaching Degarashi port." Hermione smiled at all the people in ships around her. There were fishing and cargo boats and she could see groups of children running along the beaches of the nation. The port town was bustling with people as the ship docked and finally stopped moving after three days of travel. The walkway was placed and Okada walked with Hermione out on the dock taking care to watch were they stepped as fish and nets were everywhere. When they reached the end of the dock Okada raised his hand in greeting towards another man who was standing nearby. The man nodded and walked forward.

"You must be Granger Hermione, it is a pleasure to meet you."

 _ **Yay next chapter done! So Hermione has made it to the hidden nations. I'm sorry if this chapter was boring but I promise that things will get a bit more interesting. So now the question I have for my lovely readers is who do you think is going to be Hermione's escort. Leave a guess in a review or just review for the heck of it. Until next time Slayer out.**_


	3. Welcome to Konoha

"My name is Hyuuga Neji, I will be escorting you to Konoha." It took Hermione a second to make her brain work again, as it was still trying to process the man in front of her. She felt a small bit of guilt at thinking that he was a woman for a split second. Not that she could really be blamed as his hair was all the way down to his butt. Hermione felt a slight bit of envy at how nice the male's hair was since she had to deal with frizzy hair all the time.

"It is very nice to meet you as well Hyuuga-san." Hermione held out her hand in greeting and was slightly surprised when he grabbed it without any trouble. His eyes were unlike anything she had seen before. At initial glance she has assumed that he was blind but she reasoned that they would not have sent a blind man as her guide. He also had no trouble following her movements and kept track of what was happening in the surroundings. Neji shook her hand firmly before turning to address Yuuto who was standing behind her.

"Okada-san thank you for getting her here safely."

"My pleasure." Okada gave a small bow and Neji turned back to include Hermione in the conversation.

"Since the day is already half over I booked rooms at an inn for the night. We will be heading out tomorrow morning."

"Wonderful, I will get my men settled with ship while you escort Granger-san to the inn. I will see you both later then." Hermione waved as Yuuto walked away leaving her with this stranger. A small voice in her head called for Yuuto to stay, as he was the only familiar face. But then steeling her resolve Hermione made herself turn to follow Neji. She knew that when she took this job she would be embarking on a trip to a place where she would have to meet new people all the time. This was just the beginning of that journey and she needed to make herself comfortable with the people she would be spending a year with.

"Follow me Granger-san." Hermione stepped next to Neji to walk beside him as they made their way through the port. She took some time to take in her surroundings, as it had been a long time since she had spent any time near the sea.

"It's so beautiful here." Trying to break the silence by making casual small talk was the only thing she could thing of. Neji seemed like a quiet type of person but she could still try to start a conversation with him. She didn't know how much interaction she would have with Neji once they reached the village but for now he was her companion.

"It is a very nice port town. I'm sorry to say that Konoha is not near the ocean; it will be a few days journey inland before we get there." That was a little disappointing but it would give her an opportunity to see different parts of the hidden continent.

"Well I'm sure that Konoha will be wonderful in its own unique way. Can you tell me about it?"

"I am not supposed to reveal very much information as you are supposed to learn about it once we arrive in Konoha." Neji spoke with a very serious no nonsense kind of tone leaving nothing up to interpretation. Although it was a little off-putting for casual conversation, if other authority members in this nation behaved in such a manner then professional dealings would be much easier. Hermione hated people who danced around the subject and much preferred if matters were taken seriously and managed in an appropriate and efficient way.

"Oh, I understand. How long have you lived in Konoha?"

"I have lived there my whole life, most people born in the larger villages do not leave." She wanted to try and get some more information when the stopped in front of a large building.

"This is the inn, after you granger-san." Neji held the door open as the British witch walked into the lobby of the inn. He ushered her up the stairs and down a hallway stopping in front of a door.

"I recommend that you get some sleep Granger-san we will have a long day of traveling tomorrow."

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Long day of travel was right. After saying goodbye to Yuuto in the morning Hermione, had found herself ridding in a horse drawn wagon beside Neji on their way to Konoha for three days with only breaking to sleep at an inn in the evening. At first it had been kind of an interesting experience but the novelty had worn off pretty quickly after a few hours of bouncing along a dirt road. When she had inquired if there was any other sorts of transport available her guide had explained that even the wagon was fancier than how most people travel. She had been very surprised to hear that many people simply walked where they needed to go. Though the more Hermione thought about it she realized that the older methods of travel used was what was to thank for the amazing scenery. There was so much green everywhere she looked from the massive trees to the bushes and grass. Even the sky was an amazing blue that had long since disappeared in Britain beneath a layer of pollution. Yet here there was no such issue and Hermione had greatly enjoyed watching the stars at night. Without any bright city lights or pollution the view of the night sky had been absolutely amazing. It reminded her a bit of when she went camping with her parents when she was younger.

A negative was that due to the length of the journey Hermione found she had time to think about things. One thing that her mind settled on was her friends back home. She hadn't had much time to get to everyone after she had accepted the position. Most had understood when she had explained what she was doing. Harry had been worried for her safety and hadn't wanted her to leave. But after a long talk with him and his wife Ginny she had convinced him that she would be fine. Ginny had helped a great deal when she blamed Harry for not thinking women strong enough to protect themselves. The real problem had been when she had gone to discuss the trip with Ron.

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 _Flashback_

"What do you mean you're leaving?!"

"I just explained this to you Ron, I am leaving for a year for a job." This is what Hermione had dreaded and the reason why she had put off this meeting until last. At the moment she was standing in Ron's home as he paced in front of her throwing his arms up in anger as he continued to rant.

"I heard you the first time but why didn't you consult me about this!"

"I don't need your permission to run my life Ron, it was my decision to make."

"But Hermione you're leaving me for a whole year! Don't you think I should have some say in this!"

"No Ron you don't, besides the distance may do us some good." Ron suddenly stopped his pacing and turned towards Hermione. By now his face was about as red as his hair as he yelled at her.

"So you're running away!"

"That is not what I said and you know it!" Hermione had been trying to stay calm through this but Ron just pushed her buttons in a way very few could. She could feel her temper rising and she knew that things were only about to get worse.

"But you are Hermione! You just don't want to work things out no matter how hard I try."

"This isn't even about my trip anymore, it's about your broken ego. This is exactly why I wanted us to break it off. Whenever we try to work something out it just ends in shouting and neither of us being happy. It didn't matter what it was; I was spending to much time at work and not giving you support at your quidditch games, I should dress up more, you won't work on your table manners, you just brush me off whenever I try to have an intelligent conversation with you. We fought all the time Ron and I am sick of it!"

"You were the one who started most of the fights! You putting off getting engaged is what caused all this tension. If you would just give in we would be married with kids already!"

"You know that my job is important to me Ron! If I had accepted your proposal then I would have had to put all that hard work on hold!"

"You don't even need a job! I make enough money being a chaser for the Chudley cannons to support us and a family!"

"I will not be a housewife Ron, I am not your mother! You never understood my goals! I stood by you with your quidditch career but when I needed you for support you just pushed me to quit. Well Ronald this job is an amazing opportunity for me, and whether you like it or not I am going."

"Fine! Leave! See if I care!" Hermione just shook her head in exasperation. She was just done with the stubborn male in front of her. Turning on her heel she quickly strode out of his townhouse to the street. As she spun to apparate she saw Ron running to the door but didn't stop. With a pop Hermione disappeared from the street leaving Ronal Weasley all alone.

 _End Flashback_

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"Granger-san we are approaching Konoha." Hermione pulled herself from her memories and looked ahead to see a large mountainside looming in the distance. Buildings could be seen along the mountain ridge and looking down Hermione saw a huge gate growing closer. Soon the gate was upon them and Hermione spied two men sitting in a little booth. One had straight dark hair and was looking at some papers while the other one with crazy gravity defying spiky hair looked to be asleep. Suddenly Neji moved his arm and she caught sight of something shining before she heard a thunk and watched as the sleeping man jumped awake. The two men looked forward and noticed the wagon coming towards them.

"Hey Neji that wasn't very nice, sweet ride by the way." The spiky haired man grinned as they came to a stop in front of the little guard hut. Neji hopped off the wagon and helped Hermione down on to the ground grabbing her bag from the back.

"Well you two are supposed to be guarding the gate not sleeping the day away. I thought you were going to keep him on task Izumo." The two men exited the hut and came forward to greet them. The straight haired man, Izumo according to Neji, moved to the two wagon horses and took their reins.

"Hey I try my best but I kind of gave up on this idiot." Izumo threw his arm over the other man and smiled. Hermione felt warmth of happiness at seeing the two. They reminded her of the Weasley twins the way they interacted with each other.

"Well can you please try to act more professional, this is the envoy from Britain." The two men stopped and looked at Hermione a bit more closely. The spiky haired male tilted his head in thought then held his hand out.

"Nice to meet you envoy my name is Hogane Kotetsu, what's yours?" Hermione took his hand and gave him a kind smile.

"Granger Hermione, it is very nice to meet you Hogane-san."

"Hey I'm not really into formalities so just call me Kotetsu." Hermione wasn't sure what to make of that, she wanted to be proper and not disrespect anyone. Izumo saw the deer in the headlights look on Hermione's face and wacked Kotetsu upside the head.

"Knock it off Kotetsu you're going to scare the poor woman." Kotetsu rubbed the back of his head and gave his partner a joking glare.

"Well I just thought I would be friendly. She's been stuck with a Hyuuga for this whole trip and I wanted her to see that not all of us are emotional ice cubes." Hermione had to hold back a giggle at the look on Neji's face. Although what Kotetsu had said was really not politically correct it was kind of nice to see someone be more casual around her. Hopefully after being in the village for a while people would act less formal around her and she would really be able to experience life with the people of this nation.

"I resent that." Neji glared at the spiky haired chunin. Izumo just shook his head his friend's antics.

"I'm sorry about my friend Granger-san he can be a bit much at times, my name is Kamizuki Izumo." He gave a small bow in greeting.

"It is very nice to meet you."

"Well if you two are done being unprofessional I need to escort Granger-san to the Hokage. Take care of the horses would you." Neji steered Hermione towards the gate and into town. Hermione turned and threw a quick wave back at the two men who waved back at her. As she was turning her attention back to the town Kotetsu yelled at their retreating backs.

"Hey Neji you forgot something!" Hermione turned to ask what he could have forgotten when she saw Kotetsu throw something shiny through the air. It moved to fast she barely had time to process it but suddenly Neji had his hand up and caught the object midair. Now without it moving Hermione was able to see, much to her shock, that it was a throwing star. The British witch tried to keep her mouth shut as Neji nonchalantly pocketed the weapon into a pouch on his hip.

"I'm sorry about that Granger-san, Hogane-san can be very immature at times. Now we will be heading straight to see the Hokage. You will be given a tour of the village after the meeting by our representative, he will also show you where you will be living for the next year." Questions about the casual use of weapons were waylaid when the Hokage and her current job were mentioned. Hermione was a bit disappointed that she didn't have time to explore the village at the moment but she would have time later. A village was also not what she would call Konoha; it was more of a city. Konoha was a really interesting mix of old wooden style architecture and glass towers. The other thing that really caught her attention was the Mount Rushmore like head sculptures that were carved into he mountainside behind the village. She could make out seven heads of what she could only guess were the previous leaders of the village. She felt a burst of feminine pride when she saw that one of the heads was most definitely female in appearance.

Hermione hurried to keep up with Neji who was weaving his way through the throngs of people. The people of this village were as unique as the village itself. Hermione saw all colors of hair from the basic black, brown and blond to blue, purple and even some pink. The clothes were also all sorts of unusual styles from traditional Japanese garb to T-shirts. Hermione saw many people wearing similar clothing to Neji, which was the black pants and shirt with a green vest. She could only guess that it was a uniform of some sort. Soon enough she found herself being motioned inside a large red building.

Suddenly panic overcame Hermione as she realized that she was about to meet the Hokage. Fears of saying something wrong or doing something considered rude ran through her head. She was supposed to be a representative of Britain and she didn't want to make a bad impression. Also it was thanks to the man she was about to meet that this hidden nation became known once again. Hopefully she didn't make a fool of herself. Hermione followed Neji up several flights of stairs passing only a few people before she came a to large entryway into a room overlooking Konoha.

Hermione quickly tried to take in the people that were standing around the room. There were five people in total, four men and one woman. The man that she assumed to be the Hokage was dressed in a long white robe and hat but she couldn't see his face as his back was to her while talking with one of the men.

"Hokage-sama Granger Hermione from Britain is here to see you." The Hokage turned around and Hermione saw his face for the first time. She was shocked. From what she had heard she thought that the Hokage was going to be an older man but the man in front of her could only have been in his twenties. While she was taking in the leader of Konoha Neji gave a small bow and left the office, closing the door behind him.

"Welcome to Konoha Granger-san, it is wonderful to have you here. I am Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto the Hokage of this fine village."

"It is an honor to meet you Hokage-sama." Hermione gave a deep bow still trying to get over some of her shock.

"Well let's get introductions out of the way quickly. These are Senju Tsunade, Hatake Kakashi and Nara Shikamaru, my advisors." Once again Hermione tried to evaluate the people in front of her. Two of the advisors, Tsunade and Kakashi, looked slightly familiar to her. Thought she didn't know how that was possible since she had never been to the village before this. The last male Shikamaru seemed about her age. Overall she was a bit surprised by the greeting committee she received in the Hokage's office. No one was as she thought they would be. One of the largest things that surprised her though was the ages of the people present. It was probably from growing up in Britain but she was used to authority figures being older in age. However old age did not always mean that wisdom came with it, Cornelius Fudge was an excellent example of that. It was also a bit hypocritical of her to say that, as she was a head of department at 25.

"It is very nice to meet you, I hope we can work well together."

"And lastly this is Umino Iruka and he is the representative for Konoha. He will be the one you will spend the most time with and will help you with acclimatizing yourself to living here in the village."

"It is nice to meet you Granger-san." The man gave her a bow and a kind smile.

"I'm sure you are tired from your journey so this won't be a very long meeting. Were you given any information on what is expected of you during this transfer."

"I am aware that I am to live within you village for a period of a year to learn how this society lives. I was told that you would be deciding how much information of the village running that will be revealed. I am simply excited to be learning about this new nation and how we could forge political alliances in the future."

"Well for right now we want you to focus on understanding the way this village works to the civilians. Umino-san will help in educating you in the history and politics of the village. I know that you are able to speak our language as you are doing so right now, however can you read it?"

"I tried to learn as much as possible before leaving for this position, however your written language is very extensive. I'm sure you are aware of my magical abilities and that is how I am able to speak your language but it only works for spoken word. There is a translation spell that works for writing but it can be slightly inaccurate and I would prefer not to use it on more official documents."

"We are aware of your magical abilities and for now we ask that you avoid using them in public. This speaking translation will of course be an exception. Once you are more settled we will do a thorough evaluation of where your techniques stand in comparison to ours. For now Umino-san will escort you to the apartment that will be yours for the year. You will have access to a bank account so you can support yourself. If you have any questions feel free to contact Umino-san and he will be happy to help you. For now I think we should get you settled in your apartment. Umino-san would you please escort Granger-san."

"It was an honor to meet you Hokage-sama."

"It was wonderful to meet you as well Granger-san I am sure you will do well here." Iruka walked forward and lead Hermione out of the building. Hermione breathed a sigh of relief that introductions had gone well. The Hokage seemed like a nice man even if he did seem very young for the position. Some of the other people in the room appeared to be more qualified than the Hokage himself.

"So Granger-san I want to welcome you to Konoha."

"Thank you Umino-san. From the little I have seen it seems like an amazing place." Hermione gave a small smile at the man walking beside her. Now that she was out of the pressure of the Hokage office she took a moment to really look at the man that she was going to be spending her time with for the next year. He wore the standard uniform that she had seen many people in already. He was taller than her by a good foot not counting the ponytail that was sticking out the back of his head. His most interesting feature by far was the long scar that ran across his face over the bridge of his nose. However the large scar did nothing to detract from his handsome face, it just added character. Hermione caught herself when she thought of her new colleague as handsome. It was not a good idea to let any of those thoughts sprout. She had a job to do and was not about to allow anything get in the way of that.

"Konoha is a true jewel and I am proud to call it my home. I will give you a proper tour of the village tomorrow after you have had some time to rest and unpack."

"Thank you that sounds wonderful." Hermione smiled as she walked through the village with Iruka. Now her new life here really began and she couldn't wait to see what adventures she would encounter.

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 **Yay another one done! I am really sorry if it is a bit boring right now but I just have to get all the stage stetting out of the way. Once Hermione is more established in the village then things will begin to relax and be a lot more fun. Also I am sorry is people sound kind of stiff but people would have to sound very formal when talking with a political envoy. Don't worry Hermione will get to see how people really are from the Narutoverse.**

 **Now about Neji, yes he is alive. I will be trying to follow the Narutoverse cannon as much as possible but there will be some changes, Neji is one of them.**

 **I hope you guys liked the chapter and I would love it if you could hit that lovely little REVIEW button down below. If you have an idea that you would like to see in this fic send me a PM and I will see about working it into the story. Until next time Slayer out.**


	4. Getting to know you

_**I would just like to say a quick sorry. FanFiction was being really stupid and wouldn't allow me to upload my file and I tried like twenty times. Then I tired the copy paste method but that turned it into an unreadable mess. So if you got a notification for this chapter and then it didn't work, I am sorry.**_

Hermione was sitting at the kitchen table in what would be her home for the year. The apartment was nice but not too fancy with a bedroom, living room, and kitchen and a small dinning area. But Hermione liked it that way. She was never one for huge extravagance and enjoyed the simple life style that she was expected to live in this new place. Hermione was roused from her thinking by a knock at the door. Opening it she was greeted by the smiling face of her guide for the day, Iruka Umino.

"Good morning Granger-san. I hope you had a pleasant sleep."

"I did thank you. Now let's get going, I want to see as much of the village as I can today." Iruka smiled and gestured for Hermione to lead the way. Grabbing her purse and locking the door behind her she followed Iruka down the stairs to the main lobby and then out into the sunny June day. Iruka quickly guided Hermione to the market square where all the stands were already full of wears and food.

"This is the market square where you can find almost anything you need. There are some supermarkets sprinkled around the village however most prefer to come here." Hermione and Iruka walked by the stands as people yelled prices and shoved products in their faces trying to sell them.

"I still find it interesting that this is referred to as a village. I was expecting something much smaller, not a city." Hermione remarked to her guide as she examined a cart that was selling fresh fruit.

"Well Konoha and all the other villages did start as just that, villages. Some are still rather small, however the major ones have grown quite large. I guess that it's just been called a village for so long that to try and change it now would just be too troublesome." Iruka groaned and smacked his forehead in irritation.

"Are you alright?" Hermione asked worriedly trying to find out what was wrong. Iruka waved away her concern and they continued on their walk through the market.

"I'm fine, I just realized how Shikamaru like that last sentence sounded." Hermione scrunched her brow in confusion. Was it some cultural joke that she did not understand?

"Shikamaru?"

"Nara Shikamaru, who you met yesterday, is well known for saying troublesome for pretty much everything. It's a bit of a running joke around the village." The name jogged a memory and suddenly Hermione remembered the face of a young man with spiky, pineapple like hair from the day before.

"He's one of the Hokage's advisors isn't he?"

"Yes he is. It's strange to see him working so hard now when it was nearly impossible to even make him do his homework."

"What do you mean his homework?"

"Oh, well you see I'm a teacher at the academy. I'm taking the year off to work as a representative but I was the teacher for many of the younger generation. Nara Shikamaru was one of my students, as was the Hokage." The British witch was shocked. The man who was to be her guide had taught some of the current heads of the village.

"You taught the Hokage! You must be an incredible teacher." Iruka laughed and shook his head at the gob smacked look on Hermione's face.

"Well I only taught them at the academy, which is rudimentary stuff. After the students graduate they move on to four man teams where they do most of their learning. I believe that once you have lived here for a while the Hokage is planning for you to tour the academy."

"That sounds wonderful. It must be interesting for you to see children that you taught grow up to be powerful leaders."

"Well I always knew that Naruto would be an incredible Hokage. It was always his wish and he would yell at anyone who would listen that he was going to be the future Hokage." Hermione thought about the new information as she stopped to examine another stand. His description of the Hokage seemed different than the calm and serious man that she had seen the day before. But then again people change a lot when they grow up, and she hadn't been living in the village long enough to really get to know what the Hokage was like.

"Well he had the support of a great teacher to help him. " Iruka simply laughed.

"Well I didn't teach him all that much. Besides-"

"COMING THROUGH!" Iruka was cut off as a yell echoed through the market. Turning to see what was going on Hermione was shocked as a massive dog the size of a horse come bounding through the market. The immense canine was chasing after a brown cat with a red bow and a very determined look in its eyes. The British witch froze as the cat shot towards her and landed in her arms, trying to hide from its chaser.

"KIBA STOP!" Iruka jumped in front of Hermione and grabbed the dog's head bringing it to a halt.

"Sorry about that Iruka-sensei. We almost had the damn thing when it decided to cut through the market." Now that things had come to a stop Hermione realized that a man was astride the large dog. The man was incredibly wild looking with his long brown hair, a scruffy beard and large canine teeth. The red triangle tattoos on his face only served to help his Wildman look. Iruka just sighed as the dog pushed its massive snout against his chest asking for forgiveness.

"Yes Akamaru I know you're sorry. Why are you two even doing the Tora mission?"

"Revenge. I babysat for Ino the other week cause she was desperate and the brat and I accidentally ruined this new dress she bought. She called in a couple favors and blackmails and managed to get me stuck on D's for a week." Iruka just hung his head at the mischief that his former student still managed to get into. The sound of meowing brought his attention back to the fact Hermione was currently holding the demon cat of Konoha in her arms. Kiba followed his view and was quite shocked that someone was actually holding Tora, and the cat wasn't clawing his or her eyes out. In fact the cat seemed to be enjoying itself as Hermione rubbed behind her ears. Iruka thought he was hearing stuff when he heard a soft purring sound coming from the devil feline.

"Kiba may I introduce Granger Hermione, the envoy from Britain." Iruka had to hold back a groan when he realized that his former student almost trampled the envoy. Wouldn't that be fun to explain to the British ministry, that their representative had been trampled to death by a massive dog and its hotheaded owner. This outing was supposed to be simple and show some of the sights of the village. They were making a horrible first impression.

"Hi there, I'm Inuzuka Kiba and this is my partner Akamaru. Sorry about all the commotion, things got a little out of hand. You aren't hurt are you?" Kiba scratched the back of his neck in nervousness not only because of his blunder but the power he was feeling. He was used to the feeling of chakra but the foreign woman seemed to buzz with an unfamiliar energy. And on top of that his former teacher was giving him a death glare. It didn't matter how old you were, everyone knew of the infamous Iruka glares. It was much safer to stay on the academy teacher's good side.

"It's no trouble, and no I'm not hurt."

"Well I'm glad to hear that. Now I will be needing that cat and then I will be on my way." Hermione smiled and tried to hand the cat over but Tora dug her claws in and wouldn't let go. Hermione slowly unhooked the cat from her body and handed her over. However just as Kiba was about to grab the pesky feline, Tora leapt away and took to the rooftops.

"Damn cat! I got to go, see you around." Kiba leaned forward and Akamaru shot off following the trail of the demon cat. Hermione laughed and waved at their backs before turning back to Iruka who had a look of annoyance on his face.

"I'm sure to never be bored around here if that's a daily occurrence." Iruka sighed and felt a bit of pressure leave his shoulders. He was in charge of making sure that negotiations went well and that Hermione felt comfortable within the village. Thank goodness it seemed that she hadn't been to bothered by the mess that had just happened.

"Almost once a week you see a poor team of rookie shinobi chasing after Tora. Everyone has to go through it and we all swear that it's demon cat. She has to be cause that damned cat must be pushing almost 30 now and still has way too much energy. I'm actually shocked you managed to hold Tora, usually doesn't let anyone touch her."

"Cats seem to like me. I used to have a cat and he didn't let anyone touch him but me. Maybe it's a gift." Iruka smiled and Hermione smiled back as the two of them continued on their venture down the market. The venders had barely paused in selling their wares, used to the craziness that came with living in a shinobi village. Hermione stopped at a few vendors and purchased some fresh food that she would need for the week. Luckily her purse had an expansion charm on it so she could fit all her groceries. She greatly enjoyed seeing Iruka's shocked face as she placed massive bags of food into her tiny purse and lifted it without any trouble.

"I haven't seen much of what your people are capable of, but from what I have seen this little bag seems pretty basic."

"Well we do have a system of scrolls that we use to store stuff in but your bag seems much more simple. Is it a seal of some sort or a dimensional pocket?"

"It's magic." Hermione smiled and couldn't help but laugh at the slightly annoyed look on Iruka's face as he took in her sarcasm.

"Very funny Granger-san." Hermione smirked at him in good fun and Iruka just shook his head.

"Well I'm thinking that since we are going to be spending a lot of time working together we should know a bit about one another." Iruka didn't let it show but Hermione noticed from his face that he wasn't very happy with the idea.

"I'm sorry if I offended you Umino-san." Hermione felt guilty as she realized that people around here were probably not jumping at the chance to share information with someone from a completely different continent.

"No you didn't offed me, I just don't really know what to say." The young woman breathed a sigh of relief when Iruka didn't outright deny giving any information. He was simply being cautious, and maybe a bit shy, when it came to sharing information about himself.

"Well I guess I can start. My name is Granger Hermione and I am a 25-year-old witch from Britain. I love reading and learning new things and I can't stand bad table manners or leaving things until the last minute. You don't have to tell me your life story but give it a go." Iruka had a flashback to the academy days when he had first been on a team and his sensei had made everyone do a similar thing. He was slightly weary of giving information to a woman who was practically a stranger. However, Naruto had told him to make her feel welcome and he wanted Hermione to feel comfortable within the village. To do so she had to create relationships within the village and he was going to be her main link for information and guidance.

"Alright well my name is Umino Iruka and I am a 34 year old chunin from Konoha. I love teaching and learning new things and I don't like laziness and bullies." It wasn't until he had finished his introduction that he realized it was almost a carbon copy of what Hermione had said.

"Well it's nice to meet you Umino-san, it sounds like we have a lot in common. I sure that we will get along well and make this transfer flourish. So have you lived in Konoha your whole life?" Hermione didn't know what to think about what her guide had said. He may have simply said similar things to her because it was easy. However, if they really did have such similar traits than hopefully this transfer would work out well. With similar personalities they were less likely to bump heads and really try to make their situation work.

"Yes I have. I have made frequent trips to the various villages on the continent, sometimes for long periods of time, but Konoha is always home for me."

"I look forward to learning more about this place. Your culture seems so interesting and different from my own. I think it will be an amazing experience to get to know a completely distinctive way of life." And she wasn't lying when she said that. Hermione loved to learn new things and this new village was ripe with information.

"Well I look forward to teaching you about Konoha. I was planning on taking you to the library tomorrow to teach you about some of the main clans that form this village."

"Clans?" In Britain there were some larger families, mainly purebloods, but non-really classified themselves as clans.

"Yes, most of Konoha is made large family clans. I will keep that lesson for tomorrow since today is supposed to be about showing you around." Hermione realized that with all her questions they had gotten a bit sidetracked from her tour.

"Lead the way." Iruka gestured for her to follow as they made their way out of the market to the outer rim of the village. The houses began to thin and more trees became visible until a forest with small clearings came into view.

"These are the training grounds and I suggest that you stay away from them. Many students are taught around here and we don't want you getting hurt due to a stray weapon or stumbling into a trap meant for another."

"I understand, thank you for the warning. I was told that it is a very militaristic society here and I guess training grounds are a good example of that." She hopped to see a demonstration of the fighting style done in Konoha but no one seemed to be in the nearby training grounds. Little did Hermione know that there were a few teams in the area but they were simply hiding and observing the temporary member of their village.

"Our military is very important, it's what keeps Konoha as one of the top villages. To keep everyone in top shape they need placed to practice and those are the training grounds. The grounds within the walls are normally used for beginners and simple sparing matches. The more advance shinobi use the outer ones to avoid destruction of property. Are we so different from you own home?"

"Well I haven't been here very long but things are definitely different. The magical society in Britain is not militaristic in the least. Sadly we were forced to be when a war broke out due to the resurrection of a dark lord. There was a lot of unnecessary death because people were not prepared. But now things have changed. I'm the head of the law enforcement division for my government, and with the help of the new minster we have managed to pass laws so we are better prepared. Our Aurors, our police force, have new training regiments and things are much more strict. I hope I can learn something from your systems here to help my home if a war ever starts again."

"Well for now you will be learning more about our civilian dealings but once you have settled in more and are familiar with the way of life here then Hokage-sama will start allowing you more knowledge to the shinobi side of things. You also need to learn about chakra if you are to understand the way things work when dealing with shinobi. I imagine that it is somewhat similar to your magic."

"Well I'm not sure since I haven't really seen any demonstrations." Iruka paused with a thoughtful look on his face. Then running through some quick hand signs a water ball formed in his hand.

"Right now I am using chakra to pull the water from the air into a ball. It is a handy technique when one is low on water but it can also be used as an offensive technique, if made large enough. Can you do similar things with your magic?" They had learnt about the magic of the outer lands from the Japanese envoy when they had first opened the borders. However, the man had also told them that all the magical societies over the world were slightly different and not to base one on the other. Apparently the British magic society was quite different from the Japanese, which was somewhat similar to the shinobi system.

"Well we have a spell that can conjure water but almost all witches and wizards require a wand to channel their power. Very few can perform magic by simply using their hands."/

"Well I cannot form a water ball out of thin air either. Shinobi use a combination of hand sign to channel chakra and perform the technique."

"Ah I see, so instead of a wand you have hand sings." Iruka nodded in confirmation.

"Some techniques can be performed without hand signs, but only after extensive practice."

"Do you think I could learn to use chakra?" Hermione sincerely hopped that she could learn this foreign ability. It would be one more thing to add to her arsenal if she ever needed it.

"I don't believe you can. When the envoy from Japan was here he asked the same question and we checked his chakra coils. Your coils are like a second set of nerves that allow someone to use chakra. We had him checked and he didn't appear to have any. We discussed things and came to the conclusion that your magic core has replaced your chakra coils in a way. So no you cannot use any of our techniques and we cannot learn magic." Iruka could see the disappointment on the woman's face but soon it was replaced with a new form of determination.

"Well I can learn as much about it as I can even if I cannot perform it." Iruka smiled. She had the same energy in her voice that Naruto had when he got excited about learning something new. Although Naruto would probably die if could only read about something, he loved practical work way too much.

"I believe that Hokage-sama has a lesson planed for you that will be more in depth and detailed than I can give."

"Well I look forward to it. Now let's finish this tour."

 _ **Yay it's done! I'm sorry about the long wait but I have been so busy with school and work that I just didn't have a chance to sit down and write. Also I know these opening chapters are kinda boring but Hermione needs to get settled in and than things will start happening. I want to thank all my lovely reviewers and I hope you guys keep it up.**_

 _ **Now on another note I was thinking of getting a beta. I am aware that my grammar could use some work and sometimes its just good to have a second opinion on the matter. I would also like my beta to be able to bounce ideas back and forth with so if anyone is interested please send me a PM. If anyone just has an idea that they would like to see in the story then also send me a PM or leave a review. Until next time Slayer out.**_


	5. Of clans and masked men

"Ok you stupid book! _Cooperate_!" Hermione huffed in frustration as she attempted to pull the wedged book off the library shelf. Normally she considered books sacred things but this one in particular was trying her patience. Of course, it didn't help that the book happened to be on one of the higher shelves leaving no way to get leverage.

"Do you need assistance, Granger-san?" The voice startled her and Hermione turned to find the masked visage of Hatake Kakashi, a smirk showing beneath his mask. .

"No thank you, Hatake-san. I am perfectly capable of getting it on my own." Hermione clipped. Under normal circumstances, she would have pulled her wand out and used magic, but she was trying to attract as little attention as possible per the Hokage's wish. However the amusement she saw in the eye of the silver haired man was making her reconsider, if only to remove the look from his face. She was just moving for her wand when the tall man reached over her head and plucked the book from the shelf.

Kakashi lifted his visible eyebrow as he examined the cover of Hermione's reading material. "Looking into the clans of Konoha, Granger-san?"

Hermione stiffened at the question, but replied anyway. "Yes, as a matter of fact. Umino-san was teaching me about them and I wanted to learn more before speaking with the trade guilds. The clans play a very important part in this village, both military and civilian matters. If I want to become well acquainted with the matters of the village then I need to understand their working relationships." Kakashi listened intently as Hermione presented her argument.

"Well, since you are so curious, what clans have you learned about so far?" Hermione was sure that the older male knew perfectly well what she had been allowed to learn. He was one of the Hokage's advisors and somewhat in charge of what she had access to, after all.

"Mostly civilian and minor ones. I haven't encountered the Hatake clan, yet, though."

"With good reason Granger-san. Our ninja clans don't give out their history to just anyone." His masked face didn't even change expression as pale fingers flipped through the thin pages of the book.

"I understand that, Hatake-san, and I'm not trying to overstep my bounds. But, may I have my book back please? I have a meeting with the merchant guild in an hour and I don't want to be late."

"Ah. I understand, we certainly wouldn't want that." Hermione smiled and held out her hand ready to accept her book.

"Thank you for understanding, now-" The book was almost in her fingers when Kakashi pulled it back and tucked it inside his vest.

"Oh yes I understand perfectly well, and that is why I will escort you to the guild to be sure you do not lose your way in the busy streets." Hermione forced a smile onto her face. Do not jinx the Hokage's advisor. Do not jinx the Hokage's advisor. Do not-

"Thank you but that really isn't necessary, Hatake-san, I can find my way on my own."

"Nonsense. What kind of host would I be if I left you to get lost in an unfamiliar city?" Hermione didn't even bother to respond as she saw the smile in his eyes. Besides it would be rude to refuse the help of one of the Hokage's advisors.

"Thank you, Hatake-san." Giving a small head bow in acquisition the British witch picked up her bag as they headed towards the door. Quickly signing out the book that was still in the leaf shinobi's possession, they were ready to head out.

"It's no trouble. Now let's get going. I would hate for you to be late." Hermione followed the silver haired man out of the library and began walking down the busy streets. Her annoyance rose slightly when she saw Kakashi take out her book and begin reading while they walked. The annoyance turned to slight awe as he wove through the street traffic and avoided obstacles without even lifting his nose. Somehow, this man was still able to be aware of his surroundings even if he didn't show it: a skill that Hermione had never quite mastered, even with her extended time reading and walking. She was always running into other people and tables, to Harry and Ron's amusement.

"Interesting reading, Hatake-san?"

"Oh yes, even though the shinobi clans aren't featured in this book." Hermione's face fell, slightly in disappointment. She should have known better, but after seeing some of the things that the shinobi of Konoha could do, she was itching to get more involved in their lives.

"They aren't?"

"No. Those books are in the shinobi-only section of the library. You could check the book out if you had signed permission, though." The shinobi's one visible eye looked over at the woman beside him in a knowing manner. Hermione blushed a little bit seeing as she had been caught. Well, it wasn't that much of a surprise since she was living in a village where people were paid to be suspicious and sneaky.

"And, how exactly do I get permission?" Kakashi turned back to the book and flipped over a few pages.

"Ask Umino-san, he'll be able to help you. But, you need to get permission from the Hokage, first."

"I see." The pair stopped in front of the merchant guild and the silver haired jonin finally gave Hermione back her book.

"Thank you for escorting me, Hatake-san." Hermione gave a deep bow and clutched the book to her chest.

"My pleasure Granger-san. Just out of curiosity, have you begun to learn about the history of Konoha yet?" Hermione raised an eyebrow at the slightly out of place question.

"Umino-san was concentrating on my language lessons first. Now he has started me at the beginning. We haven't gotten to the recent history yet."

"Interesting, well I hope you have a pleasant meeting, Granger-san." Kakashi turned and waved towards Hermione and it was then with the background of the Hokage mountain behind that something finally clicked in the young woman's mind.

"Hatake-san! You were the Hokage!" Hermione was having trouble keeping her mouth off the ground. The masked face carved into the mountain was staring back at her in an almost taunting manner. It was as if the carving was mocking her for all the time she had stared at it and never realized the resemblance.

"Goodbye, Granger-san." With a wave the man disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

"Merlin, I am such an idiot." Hermione muttered to herself as she made her way inside for the meeting.

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Kakashi thought over his meeting with the British witch, Hermione. She seemed incredibly smart and driven, and that is what worried him. When Naruto had first broached the subject of opening the borders again, he had been one of the people firmly in the "NO" category. Unfortunately, he wasn't Hokage anymore and it was up to Naruto to make decisions for the village. The relations with the Japanese magical society had gone quite well considering that their two cultures were rather similar. However, when the idea of contacting magical Britain had been raised, the Japanese ministry had cautioned them. They had warned them that the British magical community was wary of anything new that could be considered a threat.

"Kakashi what have I told you about stalking?" The seasoned shinobi didn't even flinch as the other male joined him on his perch.

"That I shouldn't do it and it's a creepy habit that will get me beaten up. But, it's not _really_ stalking. Just information gathering. ." The silver haired shinobi returned to watching Hermione through a window from the roof of the building across the street.

" I know you are worried about this exchange, and so am I, but we already have an ANBU team keeping an eye on her, and I am with her almost every day." The copy-nin knew that what the scared academy teacher was saying was true. But you can't teach an old dog new tricks and he was a paranoid, stubborn, grisly dog that was not going to be changing its tactics any time soon.

"I'm sure that you are all doing a fine job but old habits die hard in my battle worn mind. We can't face another war, especially one from an unfamiliar territory." Kakashi had done extensive research along with everyone else when they had decided to open the borders. After many test with the Japanese ministry comparing their jutsu to magic they were pretty certain chakra and jutsus were the more powerful of the two.

"You know as well as I do that even if something were to happen, the barriers will hold and the Japanese ministry would stand by us."

"You're becoming too complacent in your old age, Iruka." Kakashi sighed. Even though there had been peace for years now it was hard to accept that and relax after years of a shinobi lifestyle. He has always been a shinobi from an incredibly young age and had never really had the opportunity to learn what it was like to just breath.

"You're just becoming more paranoid. And who are you calling old? _You're_ older than _me_." Kakashi couldn't help but chuckle as the irate chunin put his hand on his hips and mock pouted. The silver haired nin couldn't help himself from reaching out and yanking on Iruka's ponytail. The man attached to said ponytail swatted the hand away and punched his friend in the chest.

"Now Iruka don't get your panties in a twist." Iruka huffed before grabbing the copy ninja by the arm and as he began dragging him towards the Hokage tower.

"You know, old man, people are going to think you have a crush on our resident witch with the way you watch her. Now come on, we have a meeting to get to and I will not allow you to be late." Kakashi choked at the comment and began to squirm to try and escape the schoolteacher's grasp. Though, when Iruka levelled the scolding glare on him, he froze. Well, it was fine if he broke his always-late rule a few times.

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Hermione jumped in her seat as a large, tanned book dropped in front of her. It made a loud _thump_ as clouds of dust rose from the table. She coughed once and looked up at Iruka, who was standing in front of her.

"Is this it?" she asked, pointing at the book. Iruka nodded and sat down beside her.

"Yep. _Konoha's Shinobi Clans and their History_. It's a little outdated, but it's the best I could do. "

Hermione smiled at him and gently shook her head. "It's great, Umino-san. I really appreciate this."

Iruka grinned back and scratched the scar on his nose. "Don't worry about it, Granger-san."

Hermione turned back to the book and opened to the first section. At the top was some kind of symbol resembling two horseshoes with a line through them. She looked down at the page covered with japanese words and tried to translate them, but found she recognised less than what she did.

"The-the _Sen...ju.._ clan? Am I saying that right?"

Iruka leaned over her shoulder and looked at the symbol. "Hm-mn. That's the sign for the Senju clan. The Shodaime Hokage was Senju Hashirama. The Nidaime was his brother, Senju Tobirama, and the Godaime his granddaughter, Senju Tsunade. Though now, there aren't many from the clan."

"I see." Hermione turned the page. At the top of this page was a faded, red and white fan. She could pick out more words than from the last, such as _police, isolated,_ and... _eyes_?

"That's the Uchiha clan," Iruka answered before she could ask. "They used to be one of the largest clans in Konoha, almost making up half its population. They ran the police force, different from the rest of the shinobi, and were famous for they're powerful dojutsu."

"Dojutsu? I don't think I'm familiar with that? Its some kind of technique, right?"

Iruka smiled at her and nodded. "Yes, very good. It's an ability controlled by the eyes. The Uchiha had what's called the Sharingan, or Copy-Wheel. The ability to copy jutsu by looking at it. Of course, it's far more complex than that, but that's the basic."

Hermione nodded again, then turned back to the book before the words caught up to her. "Wait, you said 'was', did something happen to them?"

Iruka didn't meet her eyes, just turned back to study the stylized fan.

"Yes. They were all killed a couple decades ago, by Uchiha Itachi. The only one he spared was his little brother Sasuke, who was 7 at the time, I believe."

Hermione gaped in horror. An entire clan killed by one man, and the sole survivor being a little boy. She wondered where he was today, if he was even still alive. Or sane. All that trauma must haunted him for the rest of his life. She couldn't even begin to imagine.

Iruka seemed to have had enough of the stale atmosphere and decided to change the subject. He turned to the next page. At the top of this page was a yin-yang circle, surrounded by eight groups of lines. She concentrated on the name below it, actually being able to read this one.

"Hyuuga, right? Hyuuga Neji was my escort here from Tea-Country."

The man nodded. "Yes, his younger cousin, Hyuuga Hinata is the current heir, and soon to be head of the clan."

"Does she have the same...um.. _eyes?_ "

Iruka laughed lightly, scratching the back of his head. "Yes. The whole clan does, it's a dojutsu called the Byakugan."

"When I first saw him, I thought he was blind. I guess it makes sense if it's hereditary."

"Yeah, a lot of civilians make that mistake the first time they meet a Hyuuga. They never make it twice though."

"I guess not. " Hermione looked back at the book, then at Iruka, and asked what had been on her mind since he had first brought the book. "What about your own clan? The Uminos?"

She instantly regretted it, watching as his face fell in what could only be called grief.

"I came from a...small family. My parents were shinobi, but they died when I was younger. Which just left me."

Hermione placed a hand on his shoulder, leaning in slightly. "I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have brought it up."

Iruka smiled at her, his eyes a little more glassy than they should have been.

"It's fine, Granger-san. They were shinobi, and so am I. They gave their lives for their nation and that is something I should never forget. And If I don't talk about them every now and then, that's exactly what's going to happen."

Hermione thought about his words, about the wizarding world and all those who died in the war. If her parents had given their lives, she would probably feel the same. She _did_ feel the same, about all her friends who died in the war. It gave her a little more perspective on the shinobi.

"I think I know how you feel. I lost some close friends during the war." Iruka reached into a pouch on his leg and pulled out some cloth. Hermione could only hypothesize that he used it as a quick bandage solution in an emergency. He held out the tan hand with the cloth. Hermione was confused for a second before she realized that a few tears had managed to escape. Taking the cloth with a nod and quiet murmur of thank you she dabbed at her eyes. She probably seemed weak in front of this war-hardened shinobi but there was nothing she could do about it. After a few minutes the tears stopped and Hermione was able to get herself back under control.

"Talk about them Granger-san. Remember the great times you all had together and don't let those memories fade. I'm sorry Granger-san this conversation turned much more serious than I intended it to be. Are we alright to move on?" Hermione nodded.

"Yes, but thank you for the advice Umino-san." Iruka gave her a small smile as they turned back to the book. Although she was listening Hermione couldn't help but think about the conversation they had just abandoned.

 _ **Yay another chapter is done! I would like to thank my new beta Krisss2 who is not only fixing my horrid grammar but being a co writer as well. I don't really have anything else to say except to keep the reviews coming as I would really appreciate them. Until next time Slayer out.**_


	6. A lesson and learning

Hermione was practically skipping along beside Iruka as they walked through the streets of Konoha in the hot July weather. After nearly a month of merchants and civilian teachings she was finally being given the chance to really start learning about shinobi and their chakra. She wasn't quite sure what they were doing today but Iruka had told her that they were meeting with someone who would explain chakra to her, and she absolutely couldn't wait to get started. As they continued to make their way through the crowds Hermione realized that they were heading towards the large glass building she knew to be the hospital. Luckily she hadn't had any cause to visit the place yet but it made sense that a medical practitioner would explain the bodies chakra system to her.

"Would you prefer I run us over to the hospital Granger-san? You seem about ready to fly off." Hermione glanced sideway to see her male companion with a slight smirk on his face.

"I'm sorry Umino-san, I'm just so excited. This is really what this whole exchange is about isn't it. Getting to learn about the other country and take in a new style of life. Citizen meetings have been education in the basic running of the village but this is the true information. Information so unique and unseen by anyone outside the hidden continent." Iruka's smirk became a smile and the British witch smiled back at him.

"You have been very patient Granger-san. I am sure you are tired of the slow rate we are providing information but you patient has paid off. The Hokage feels that you are ready to really start learning more about our society. In fact I believe he has planned for you to receive a tour of the academy. I am not sure of the date but it is in the works."

"That sounds wonderful, I'm looking forward to it."

"I'm sure you are, now lets hurry as we have an appointment to keep." With that the two picked up their pace and soon found themselves in front of the towering glass structure.

When they entered the building the receptionist smiled and waved them through the bustling lobby. Hermione's heart rate picked up a bit more as they made their way down a long hallway of offices. Stopping in front of the plain wooden door Iruka raised his hand and knocked.

"Come in!" A female voice called from beyond the wood. Walking into the room Hermione was greeted by the sight of a cozy office. The more sterile environment of the hospital was camouflaged by a large area rug and wooden bookcases shoved full of books, medical instruments and photos. The walls were covered with charts of all sorts and in the middle sat a desk covered in more scrolls. Once again the age of the woman who was sitting behind the desk surprised Hermione. The woman looked to be around her age with long pink hair tied back in a ponytail and wearing a red dress. Bright green eyes looked up from the desk and took in her visitors. A beaming smile spread across the woman's face as she stood up and walked around the desk towards them.

"Iruka-Sensei! It's so good to see you! You should really come around and see me more often, but I understand that you seem to have some issue with coming to the hospital." The woman gave him a playful glare and she crossed her arms trying the looks stern. Hermione watched as Iruka scratched the back of his head in nervousness.

"Well you see…" The pink haired woman stepped closer and tilted her head to the side in thought as Iruka gave a nervous laugh.

"Hmm, I'm thinking maybe you need some incentive to remember to come for your checkup when you're supposed to." The woman uncrossed her arms and cracked her knuckles. Hermione watched as Iruka turned white, waving his hands in denial.

"Ok, ok I promise I will come in for my checkup next week." And just like that the glare stopped and the woman returned to her smiling self.

"Wonderful, make sure you stop by reception before you leave. Now I am going to assume that this is Granger Hermione the envoy from Britain correct?" Realizing she was being acknowledged now Hermione stepped forward and gave a bow.

"Yes and it is very nice to meet you…" Hermione realized that she didn't actually know the woman's name.

Returning the small bow the woman gave Hermione a friendly smile. "Uchiha Sakura, it is very nice to meet you as well Granger-San."

"Uchiha?!" She didn't mean to but Hermione realized her voice had shot up an octave when she heard the woman's last name. Luckily Sakura didn't look to offended and simply shrugged her shoulders.

"Ah, I see that Iruka-Sensei has been teaching you about the clans." Hermione tried to calm down and remain professional. Iruka seeing the awkward situation Hermione was causing herself stepped forward to give her a moment of composure.

"Yes, we discussed the history of the Uchiha clan. Also you don't need to call me sensei anymore Sakura I haven't taught you in a long time." Sakura simply smiled.

"You will always be Iruka-Sensei to me Sensei. Sorry Granger-san I'm sure you are a bit confused by my name. My husband is Uchiha Sasuke, one of the last living Uchiha." Hermione realized how silly she was being and how it made sense that Sakura inherited the name through marriage.

"I'm sorry Uchiha-san I didn't mean to be rude." Giving a small bow of apology Sakura smiled at her and waved her up.

"It is perfectly alright, I understand your surprise as you're an outsider and haven't known about the clan your whole life growing up. Now that that is out of the way, I believe that you were brought here so I could teach you about chakra?"

"Yes, yes that was it! I am very interesting about learning how your chakra works in comparison. Do they run off the same nervous system or does the electrical synapses have more impact over the utilization of abilities. Does the cardiovascular system work in relation with the production of chakra and does have larger stamina levels supplement levels to increase production. And if so then how does the potential relations between the systematic use of magic and chakra effect the surrounding musculature of the body while performing actions. And-"

Sakura started laughing and shook her head in good humor. "Now Granger-san please calm down. We will get to answering your questions but for now I think its best that we start with the basics." Hermione blushed, she always got so excited when given the chance to learn something new, her friends always teased her about it.

"Oh course, I'm sorry I am just very excited to learn about new things." Sakura smiled and tuned to look at Iruka.

"Sensei I think I can handle her. You can head out and I will make sure that she returns home safely after we have completed our lesson." The man looked between the two women and looked like he was about to refuse. Then with a sigh and shrug of his shoulder he nodded his head in acceptance.

"Alright then I will leave you to it. Have a good day now Sakura, Granger-san." With a wave Iruka turned and walked out of the office leaving the two women alone together. As soon as the door closed Sakura stretched before leaning back in a more relaxed position, propping herself up against her desk.

"I can see you're curious Granger-san so why don't you get your questions out of the way so that we can move on to the other stuff." Hermione blushed a bit wondering if she was really such an obvious read.

"What are you…"

"I am a Shinobi Granger-san, we are trained to detect even the smallest physical changes to be able to read our opponents. Now ask." The British witch looked at the pink haired woman in front of her and took a breath. She didn't want to impose on someone and ask a lot of personal question but she wasn't making much headway with the others in the village. Now she had someone offering her a chance to ask questions.

"So Umino-san was your teacher?"

"During our academy days yes." Sakura said with a nod and shrug of her shoulders.

"Did you ever interact with the Hokage while you were in school? I was told that he was also taught by Umino-san."

"Interact, HA!" Hermione jumped slightly at the loud exclamation. "Couldn't get away from Naruto on most days, not with him constantly hounding me for a date." Trying to keep her jaw off the floor Hermione continued attempting to remain as professional as possible.

"The Hokage and you used to date?" Sakura laughed as she shook her head negatively.

"No, I wouldn't give him the time of day. We were in the same class and I always found him so annoying. Could never sit still, constantly shouting at the top of his lungs and being the overall prankster of the class. Would have thought that he would grow out of it but he never changes, and I honestly hope he never does change." Hermione thought back to the meeting that she had had with the Hokage. She had only seen him in passing a few times since she had arrived but she could not combine the figure she had met with the hyperactive ball of energy that Sakura was describing.

"Not to be disrespectful but are you sure we are discussing the same person? When I talked to the Hokage he was nothing but calm and polite." Hermione was a bit taken aback when Sakura let out a bark of laughter.

"Naruto and calm do not belong in the same sentence. I wonder how many bowls of ramen Tsunade-sama bribed him with. Now Granger-san I do believe that I have completely shattered the wonderful image he has painted for himself. But he really in a great guy and once you have been here longer I am sure that you will get to know everyone for how they really are, not just the hard shells that they portray. So now that that is out of the way let us get started on learning about chakra." Realizing personal question time was over Hermione joined Sakura at her desk as she pulled a scroll out of her bookshelf and opened it, showing a human body with the chakra pathways laid out in diagram.

"So Chakra works by combining physical and spiritual energy. Physical is easy enough to understand, the more you exercise and train the better. Spiritual is done through meditation, studying and experience. To be able to control chakra you need to be able to combine the two and channel it outwardly. This is usually done with hand sings. Are you following me so far?"

"Yes, and I think that if we were to compare chakra to magic they could be understood in a similar way. Just with my understanding so far I believe that the magical core that wizarding kind have already combines the spiritual and physical into one. Because I can tell you that most of wizarding society in Britain is anything but fit. In fact I would say that many people have become somewhat lazy and too reliant on magic to accomplish the day-to-day activities of life." That had been something Hermione had realized the older she had grown. Being raised in a muggle household and still visiting often with her parents she was used to doing things by hand. Once her and Ron had moved in together she realized how lazy one became when growing up in a magical household. Ron would use his magic for everything; he couldn't even be bothered to stand up and grab something, preferring to summon it. And merlin forbid she ask his to actually do a chore like the dishes or laundry.

"I would agree with you Granger-san. The physical aspect of chakra manipulation is very important and for that reason you are hard pressed to find an out of shape shinobi, at least not one that is on active duty. There are certain clans; such as the Akimichi clan that rely on their larger body weight for jutsu but that is a special situation. An in their case while their bodies may appear to be more overweight it is a very controlled weight and is mostly muscle. It is also interesting to hear that your people are so reliant on magic. Here although we do have chakra it is not used very often for everyday tasks. It is kept mostly for fighting purposes as well as used in healing."

"Do all medical practitioners here use healing chakra?"

"No not everyone has the skill to be a medic-nin. It takes many years of detailed study and incredible chakra control. While there is medic-nin like myself many of the people here are simply doctors and nurses that do the best of their abilities. And while we do have the use of chakra for treating wounds it takes a lot of energy and most people still rely on the old fashioned ways to heal. Even shinobi, who can be some of the worst patients, have to take time to heal their injuries. Shinobi do tend to heal faster as the chakra pathways provide a boost to the immune system. Then you have people like Naruto who can get stabbed in the gut and walk away within a couple hours of rest while other would be bed stricken for weeks. One of the worst things to treat though is chakra exhaustion. If someone pushes themselves too hard and uses us all their chakra they usually pass out and are unable to do anything but sleep for weeks. In some extreme cases some people have actually died from chakra exhaustion. I assume magic users have a similar issue?"

"We can deplete our magical cores if we use too much. I have never heard of anyone dying from doing such a thing but it could be possible. Uchiha-san, can anyone use Chakra? You can only use magic if you are born with a specific gene that allows it but what of Chakra."

"Everyone here is born with the ability to use Chakra, it is a matter of choosing whether one wishes to commence with learning how to manipulate it. Everyone will always have chakra but if one does not start learning how to manipulate it from a young age then his or her chakra coils will close up. Once closed and inactive it becomes nearly impossible for someone to be able to access and manipulate their chakra like a shinobi can. There are cases of Shinobi with the inability to externally use their chakra; my friend Lee is an example of this. He can't summon any chakra outside of his body but he is still able to use it to do other things such as climb buildings and run across the water. For that reason he focuses mostly on physical combat and is incredibly good at it. Just because shinobi can use chakra doesn't mean everyone does. Some choose to become physical combat or weapon specialist and rarely use their chakra as such, they still train hard and practice with it though to keep up standards."

"I'm glad to hear that. We have some people in the wizarding world who come from a magical family but for some reason do not have the ability to do magic themselves. We call them Squibs. They are not treated the best within society although we have been working to rectify this problem and give them more equal opportunities."

"Well it's not easy for everyone with low chakra levels. Some people who want to join the forces can't because they simply do not have enough chakra, and if you come from a high-ranking shinobi clan this can cause some real problems. No society if perfect Granger-san, and unfortunately, there will always be those who suffer because of it. But we can only do the best that we can and move forward into the future. Say Granger-san would you like a tour of the hospital?"

"That sounds great." He two women smiled at each other and made their way out into the hallway.

"Wonderful, let's get going." Closing the door behind them Sakura stopped and made some hand signs before laying her hand on the door for a second. When she finished she saw Hermione watching her with curiosity.

"It's a security measure. Most Shinobi can pick any lock and as such you need seals for most places if you want any privacy."

"You mean anyone can come into my apartment at any time?" Nightmare scenarios of people walking in on her naked rushed through her head.

"I'm pretty sure there are already basic security seals on your apartment so you don't need to worry about anything. Now lets get on with the tour." Hermione and Sakura walked the halls of the hospital the heels of their shoes clicking on the grey tiles. Hermione watched as all the staff gave Sakura respectful bows and many patients called hello and greeted Sakura by name. As they walked through the various wards of the hospital Hermione realized how well known and respected Sakura appeared to be amongst so many people.

"Uchiha-san what made you want to be a medic-nin?"

"I wanted to become stronger." That threw the British witch through a bit of a loop. When one considered the medical field one did not think of a powerhouse of muscle and strength. Strength of mind and resolve yes but not always on a physical level.

"Stronger?"

"When I was younger I was really the weak link of my team. Both Naruto and Sasuke were incredibly powerful with lots of Chakra and potential to grow." This woman continued to surprise Hermione with her many connections to people she was starting to recognize. Now it was no wonder why she was chosen to teach chakra to an international stranger. Sakura was close with the Hokage and had been since what seemed a young age so there would be no question of loyalty in what she decided to teach.

"You were on the same team as the Hokage?"

"Yes, our team went through a lot. And when I saw how much Naruto and Sasuke were sacrificing to try and make up for my lack of skill I decided I needed to get strong. So I went to Tsunade-sama and she eventually took me on as an apprentice." Another big name in connection with power in the village, more and more connections that Hermione was seeing being built between the people of the hidden leaf.

"Wait Senju Tsunade? Wasn't she the fifth Hokage?"

"Yep, really our team were incredibly lucky in who we got to train us. Kakashi-Sensei was our first team captain, then each of us got trained by a Sannin." Hermione's mind was rushing a hundred miles a minute. This woman had been on the same team as the Hokage, taught by two different Hokage and married to the last of an incredibly powerful clan.

"Sanin?"

"The Sannin are Tsunade, Orochimaru and Jiraiya. I don't expect you to know their names but they are considered the most powerful Shinobi of their time. Naruto, Sasuke and I were each trained by one of them and are considered the new generation of Sannin." Hermione's brain just about short-circuited at that information as she stopped dead in the middle of the hallway.

"You are one of the most powerful shinobi in the village!" Sakura turned seeing her guest had fallen behind and smirked at the face of the British envoy.

"I don't know whether to feel insulted by that comment or not." Hermione, realizing what she had said, began bowing very quickly as she babbled apologies.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean, oh gosh why do I always have to but my foot in my mouth? I'm sorry sometimes I just start talking and-" The sentence trailed off as Hermione heard Sakura giggle then turn into full out laughter.

"Oh Granger-san it is perfectly alright. You see I'm just used to everyone in the village knowing who I am that it took me by surprise. I guess to an outsider I don't really look it do I? I will have to get Naruto to organize a spar between us so you can see what a true shinobi battle looks like."

"Do you think I would be allowed?"

"Yes, eventually. I will be perfectly frank with you Granger-san and tell you that when it comes to us you stand no chance at besting anyone in skill or power. I am not trying to insult you, as I am sure you are also powerful in your own right and a great fighter but compared to how we train here it is no comparison. Even though we are in an era of peace I fought and bled beside many people while war raged for years. So while everyone is still being very cautious about allowing you certain amount of information I have no doubt that you will be granted access and become a full member of the village while you reside with us."

"Thank you? I think?"

"I think that has been enough for today Granger-san. I will walk you back to your apartment and make sure Iruka-Sensei hasn't had a panic attack." The two women smiled and continued to make small talk as they made their way out of the hospital and through the streets of Konoha.

 _ **And there we go. I am so sorry for the long break but school was just insane and then I got tied up in other stuff so this story got put on the back burner. Now this story is not going to be action filled at all. It is more an experiment of mine to try writing about different relationships and the different sides to characters. It is a slow story with lots of build up and dependent on long conversations so if that isn't your cup of tea please don't rant at me down in the reviews. And speaking of such the more reviews I get the faster I tend to update. If you have any ideas of things you want to see happen in the story send me a review or PM and I would love to try and incorporate it. Until next time Slayer Out.**_


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